Alanna's Trash: Baby, baby, baby ... let me give you a warning ...

By For Elvis Fans Only
Source: ElvisPresley.com.au
December 29, 2009 - 11:01:43 AM

Elvis And Priscilla

Well, you may go to college,
You may go to school.You may have a pink cadillac,
But don't you be nobody's fool.

Now this is one thing, baby
That I want you to know ...

'Baby, Let's Play House - Elvis Presley and the Women Who Loved Him'

Reading the title, the book sounds good doesn't it? The problem is as the old saying goes, you can't judge a book by it's cover, or in this case, by it's title.

The problem is that this book has little to do with 'the women who loved Elvis', and more to do with telling sensationalized Albert Goldman style stories weaved with (some) truth, fiction, plain outright lies and discussion of extremely explicit sexual details. Very 'R' rated obscene stuff.

It is such a shame, but this book is trash. [Alanna's Trash]

The chapter on Sheila Ryan is the worst in this regard, describing details that I could not and would not write here. I read lines -- and was shocked -- and I was thinking, 'did I really need to read that?' The answer, NO!.

The biggest mistake made was that Alanna Nash decided to involve psychologist Peter Whitmer, and from there the concept of the book changed from 'The Women Who Loved Him' - the very interesting concept of Elvis from a women's point of view - into a 'psycho-sexual study' -- 'an attempt to explain what drove Elvis as a person and as a sex symbol, and how his attitudes about women changed, and why'. Which is appropriate as the book has little to do with 'The Women Who Loved Him', Priscilla, Linda, Ann-Margret, and more to do with book sales. Yet no one is telling the public this ... and they have left the title as is ... which is very misleading in the extreme.

While Elvis has done nothing wrong as described in the 'allegations' by Sheila Ryan, the details are only included for the sensationalist value. The reality is that the mass market for a book such as this demands such 'secrets' and 'revelations', this is at the heart of why people like Albert Goldman and now Alanna Nash have little interest in the truth. The truth is -- sex and bad news sells, as does 'revelations', fact or fiction.

As for Elvis' fans, there will be many buying this book, and disgusted, promptly returning it for a refund!

Now I am aware that different people will have different tolerances, opinions and interest in some of what I have mentioned above ... But !!! .... The biggest issue is a ridiculous -- but serious -- allegation first made by Byron Raphael and Alanna Nash in an article published in Playboy magazine in 2005. ['And that magazine (Playboy) has a very fine reputation for its articles'. Alanna Nash, June 4, 2008] [Elvis Australia Comment: Yeah sure Alanna!!!!] This was severely criticized at the time by myself, directly to Alanna, and by others. I warned Alanna that 'she would not want to repeat that again'. This was given in the context as a friendly warning from an Elvis fan, someone that cares for Elvis and the truth, and that anyone can make a mistake and can be excused - but one would not want to repeat it. But alas she has. No excuse this time! It is just so easy to slander those not present to defend themselves. The allegation itself - we cannot and will not print here, but it was accusing Elvis of committing an indecent act - one that he would have been arrested for (Even today) had he done such, and it is a disgrace that Alanna continues with the allegation, something that is without any basis of truth and with nothing in the way of evidence to back it up. It fact; quite the opposite, there is plenty to disprove it. It is/was an allegation made by a sick old man, who was -- very well paid --- for his sensationalized story. In all honesty, I can't say I am sorry to tell you he died in January 2008.

Yet in 2009, Alanna has decided to repeat his lies. (Okay for release in 2010) 'He [Byron Raphael] ... and the fact that he has been on various medications for 10 to 15 years doesn't help ... [but]he was certainly there in the '50s, and sporadic in the early '60s and even '70s (certain events)' Alanna Nash, December 2007.

'There must be more uncivilized people in the Elvis fan world than anywhere else on earth. Alanna Nash, 2008.

'I couldn't care less what these people think of me. I didn't go into journalism to win a popularity contest, and I don't care how many books I sell. Publishers make all the money--not the writers, unless you are in the league of fiction writers such as Patricia Cornwell or Scott Turow'. Alanna Nash, June 2008.

Well Alanna, I now see you are attempting to join their ranks. And Nash even quotes the infamous Albert Goldman (And who's road Alanna now travels ....) in an attempt to back up these allegations.

As the Colonel would say, 'I am not a dirt farmer'. It is a shame the same can't be said about Alanna Nash.

Rather than care for the truth, Alanna has decided that she is right and that by including some text quoting other people saying it is untrue somehow makes it okay. And even if it did, the way it is written and presented, with her own comments dismissing those statements, [see below] it is clear that the agenda is to have this taken as a fact. Or at the very least, as with her book, The Colonel, which contained the suggested possibility that Colonel Parker committed murder, this book too needed some controversy.

Now as referred to above, one such person quoted in the negative is Gordon Stoker of the Jordanaires who was on stage that night, at the Pan Pacific Auditorium, Los Angeles, October 28, 1957, and is quoted as responding to her article, 'Elvis did not do anything that was suggestive or off color, we would have seen him'.

But Nash has decided that because Gordon Stoker, and everyone else on stage for that matter, were behind Elvis they could not have seen the alleged incident. But if you have read the allegation you will understand that there is no way they could not have noticed, at least something - substantial.

Nash states, 'the Jordanaires did not have Byron's proximity from beneath the stage', yet there are no photos of him there, nor of Elvis doing anything as alleged -- no proof at all of any kind -- and she fails to take into account nor mention the fact that Colonel Parker was there, at the front of the stage.

In the photo below you can see the Colonel, at the front of the stage, with Elvis.

In his first show at the Pan Pacific Auditorium, Elvis was determined to impress his celebrity-studded audience. With Hollywood celebrities and their children among the more than nine thousand in attendance, Elvis performed eighteen songs ending with 'Hound Dog'. Throughout Elvis' performance that night, a three-foot tall replica of Nipper, RCA's trademark, sat at one side of the stage. Concluding the show with 'Hound Dog' Elvis grabbed Nipper around the neck with his left arm and lifted him from the floor, eventually lying on the floor while continuing to sing into the microphone in his right hand. The audience went wild but the newspapers the following day took a different view - As often happened at Elvis Presley concerts in the fifties, eyewitnesses saw the same stage events differently as they were filtered through predetermined prejudices, both for and against Elvis. When you consider that Elvis' playful antics while performing 'Hound Dog' on the Milton Berle Show caused so much controversy, putting your arm around 'Nipper' on stage will get interpreted as more.

The book includes other lies along with unsubstantiated claims and allegations about both Elvis and Priscilla, no doubt coming from the involvement of Child Bride: The Untold Story of Priscilla Beaulieu Presley author Suzanne Finstad who is credited for 'fact checking chapters', which is a joke in itself.

Perhaps the most unforgivable aspect of this book could well be in the final page, the credits;

... in The Acknowledgments Alanna has the gall to credit Bill Burk 'as having contributed to my knowledge of Elvis' life ...' when it was Bill Burk that first alerted the Elvis World to Alanna's disgrace in being involved with Albert Goldman style fiction with her involvement with Byron Raphael and Playboy magazine in 2005 with their lurid so called 'revelations'. To quote an old saying, 'Bill would be turning in his grave' at this ...

My advice, avoid this book and also anyone that promotes or sells this crap. Alanna Nash now has zero credibility and you would have every right to not know what to believe.

Come back, baby, come.
Come back, baby, come.
Come back, baby,

Now listen and I'll tell you baby
What I'm talking about.... Alanna ... Don't write this crap again ...

... there's (still) more ... but that's all I can find the will to talk about. Yeah.

(Originally published December 12.)

End.

Footnote : Message from Elvis Australia

Elvis Australia was offered the first pre-release interview with Alanna -- We refused.

To all those that have emailed me in the past months saying we should not be reporting on Alanna Nash's book, and had many unkind things to say about her, I have to say, you were correct!

So much for a book that was supposed to be the first comprehensive look at Elvis purely from the female prospective. While there will be those that will have to read the book after reading this report, there will also be those that, suitably warned will be able to avoid the book. But one thing is for sure - you can't but this book in our shop. We have given you our opinion, the rest is up to you.

I was very excited to receive my advance copy of this book as I had helped Alanna with photos and gave her permission to quote from our interviews - as she has done, and credited Elvis Australia for. Unfortunately, as you will have noted above :-), I was shocked and extremely disappointed by the content of this book.

I am personally credited in the book, but that will probably be removed after what I have had to say ...

All quotes by Alanna Nash as told to David Troedson, unless otherwise noted.